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Consulate General of India Sydney

It’s a national day, which commemorates adoption of India’s constitution on 26 January, 1950, and is celebrated in every village, town, city and state capital of India, besides a grand celebration and a spectacular parade in the national capital, New Delhi.

This year, Republic Day is very special because 10 ASEAN heads of States (nations) are going to be gracing the occasion as the chief guests in New Delhi.

In Austraila, there would be Republic Day celebrations in the High Commission of India in Canberra and Consulate General offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. Honorary Consulates in other places will do the same.

In Sydney, my friends and I will be at the Consulate General of India to celebrate Indian Republic Day between 9.30-11am on 26 January, 2018.

Just a few hours before the 70th anniversary of Indian Independence (71st Independence Day) on 15th August, the multicultural broadcaster, SBS, has decided to use a distorted and incorrect Map of India in its site. Kashmir is inalienable part of India, but SBS is showing it to be otherwise. The reason, whether it is due to poor information, mischief, unintentional mistake or due to intended purpose to insult India and Indian Australians (which I doubt), remains to be determined.

Whether SBS took inputs from Executive Producers of various Indian language programmes is also not known.

The best approach SBS, our own broadcaster, should do is to liaise with Consulate General of India in Sydney or High Commission of India in Canberra in regards to a matter like this. It is worth consulting DFAT too, because they are very aware of matters like this.

I have received an important communication from Government of India (GOI) officials, clarifying the issue of Aadhaar card for NRIs.

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It was recently announced in Parliament that it is mandatory to mention Aadhaar Card number in every Income Tax Return and for applying for Permanent Account Number (PAN) number effective from 1 July, 2017.

Several NRIs and Diaspora associations sent petitions to Ministry of External Affairs and Indian Missions requesting that since they file returns in India due to income from Indian sources and do not have Aadhaar Card, NRIs should be exempted from the above requirement. Many wrote to Prime Minister too.

The Ministry of External Affairs took up this issue with the Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, which has advised as below:

“As per Section 139AA of the Income-tax Act, 1961, every person who iseligible to obtainAadhaar number shall, on or after the 1st day of July, 2017, quote Aadhaar number— (i) in the application form for allotment of permanent account number; (ii) in the return of income. The above provisions apply to persons who are eligible to get Aadhaar. Under section 3 of the Aadhaar Act, 2016, only a resident is entitled to get Aadhaar. Therefore, the provisions of Section 139AA quoted above regarding linking of Aadhaar to PAN or the requirement of quoting the Aadhaar number in the return shall not apply to a non-resident, who is not eligible to get Aadhaar.”

Press Release on this issue dated issued on 5 April by Ministry of Finance is here.

Aadhaar card is available to only those people who have been residents in India, which is defined in the Act as the cumulative period of stay in India of at least 182 days in the preceding 12 months. Many NRIs will not fulfil this basic criterion, and are not eligible to have a Aadhaar Card. Consequently, as clarified above, such NRIs are not required to quote Aadhaar number while filing an Income Tax return or applying for a PAN number.

As of now, the requirement of Aadhaar Card number is not mandatory for obtaining Driving License or a SIM Card. It is one of the several documents recognized for address proof of the applicant.

This is a tribute to India’s brave hearts who sacrifice their lives to the nation.

This is a beautiful concoction of Indian classical and Bollywood dance styles by Kala Ratna Dr.Sanjay Shantaram and his team from Shivpriya Dance School, Bangalore, India. http://www.shivapriya.in/?page_id=32

Maa Tuje Salam is our contribution in our support for National Defence Fund, which works for the welfare of the members of the Indian Armed Forces (including Para Military Forces) and their dependents including assistance to Indian defence martyrs’ families. The National Defence Fund is administered by an Executive Committee, with PM as the Chairperson, and Defence, Finance and Home Ministers as Members. Finance Minister is the Treasurer of the Fund. Accounts of the Fund are kept with the Reserve Bank of India. http://www.pmindia.gov.in/en/national-defence-fund/

Dr Sanjay Shantaram is a talented dancer and actor in Kannada and Telugu film industry. Sanjay was born to, ‘Dr. Shantaram’ and ‘Swarna’. He started to learn classical dance at the age of seven. Sankara bharanam was the inspirational film, which made Sanjay go deep into the classical dance. He started his training at the age of 7 under the coaching of Smt. G. S. Rajalakshmi. He was the first rank holder in the dance examination, which was organized and carried out by the ‘Karnataka Secondary Education Board’. He made his debut as a child actor in 1981 in the film Bhaktha Gnana Deva.

He started to act in Telugu and Kannada films. At the same time, his love for dance did not diminish. He was also a good student in academics too. He scored 80% marks in his tenth standard board exams and in the same year, he ranked first in the senior grade dance competition by the ‘Karnataka Secondary Education Board’. In fact, Sanjay is a dentist too. In the year 1992, he won gold medal in a dance competition conducted in Hyderabad by ‘Navya Nataka Samithi’. He has also learnt Kuchipudi from Smt. Sunanda Devi.

Sanjay is acting in television serials too.

His dance school named ‘Shivapriya School of Dance’ in Bangalore teaches. Bharathanatyam, Kuchipudi and other folk dances to the students.

He is an internationally acclaimed dancer and his team has performed in many cities all over the world. His troupe is also in the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) panel.

It is a “Must Go” and “not-To-Be-Missed” event, with a noble purpose behind it in the support of National Defence Fund. A significant part of the money saved will go the National Defence Fund.

All tickets will be pre-booked through a booking system to make it easier for everyone.

Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, addressed the nation at 8 pm on Tuesday, 8 November and announced the banning of these notes from midnight. The justification for this decision was to control the menace of black money, which is a tool for tax avoidance and is often is also used to fund and spread terrorist activities in India. Apparently, millions of fake currency notes are smuggled into India from across the borders to finance terrorism in India. Political parties will be affected too because their (illegal) trenches of such notes will be worthless and will not be able to be used during elections.

Seemingly, it is a great decision which will be beneficial to Indian economy in the long term.

Black money is estimated to be 25% of India’s GDP and the commonest (estimated 80%) notes used for counterfeit currency are high denomination notes. If and when new notes of high denominations are printed and circulated by GOI, it is expected that they will have advanced security features which will make counterfeiting difficult, if not impossible.

This decision will therefore help India in many ways, although it will cause some temporary inconvenience to people. This could be due to short term restrictions on ATM usage, limits on maximum amount withdrawn from ATMs and banks and lack of sufficient supply of regular currency notes.

This decision affects NRIs and PIOs too. Many people travel to India at least once a year, and some do so even more often. It is not uncommon for them to have some Indian currency with them and bring it back to the country of their residence, while flying out of India. They carry it back with them when going back to India.

There are many in our community in Australia who have some Indian currency with them. Some may be travelling to India in November and December, but some may not be travelling to India for some time.

This issue are not confined to Indian Australians only. NRIs/PIOS all over the world are in the same boat.

It is not possible to exchange INR currency of high denomination into any other currency overseas presently and representatives of Indian Banks do not want to or are not authorised to deal with this matter presently.

Options which NRIs/PIOS can choose from are covered in the articles below.

Can Ministry of External Affairs, Finance Ministry, Reserve Bank of India and GOI authorities in Australia clarify this matter please?

It is likely that NRIs/PIOs will have small amounts (maximum of a few thousands) of INRs. Having said that, it is possible that the amount could be higher depending on number of people in the family. They do not wish to waste this money.

NRIs/PIOs have following options:

Carry the cash if travelling to India until 30 December and deposit them in a Post Office or Bank. The option of changing them at the airport ended on 11 November.

Exchanging of these notes at Exchange Houses or foreign branches of Indian Banks in our country of residence not available.

Deposit these notes in your NRO (Non-Resident Ordinary) account if travelling until 31 March, 2017, but we need to be in India to do so. Foreign branches of Indian Banks in our country of residence are not doing it.

Authorise someone including a relative to deposit these notes into your bank account if you have such notes in India. You will need to provide written authorisation and such authorised person will need to go to the Bank branch physically with all documents and identification. I presume you can get authorisation document with the help of your local Indian Embassy/High Commission/Consulate. This will need clarification from local GOI authorities.

Send the money with someone you can trust or a family member who is travelling to India and get the money deposited in your account as explained in point (4).

State Bank of India and a few more Banks have branches in Australia. This will be the case in many other countries too.

They should be able to allow us to open NRO accounts, if they get the permission by Government of India/RBI. This is feasible and is not a huge work.

it will ease the problem if NRIs/PIOs are treated as a special case and a consideration is given to extend the time by which they must deposit the notes in NRO accounts. It will help if they are given time until 31 December, 2017 to complete this process.

May we ask Indian High Commissioner in Australia and Consul Generals, as well as Ministry of Overseas Indians affairs, Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India, to take this matter up and help NRI/PIO community in Australia as well other countries with a practical mechanism in this matter?

In homes across Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand, families mourn sons lost to terror in Uri. They express their grief and anger. They also seek retaliatory action from the government.

Sepoy Javra Munda, 35

Merla village, Khunti (Jharkhand)

For three generations, Merla village in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, 40 km from Ranchi, has seen a number of its residents joining the Army as young men, with the oldest having gone on to retire. On Monday, Merla awaited the arrival of its first martyr.

Sepoy Javra Munda, 35, was one of the 18 killed in the Uri attack. He had been posted in Kashmir for three years and been expecting a transfer. (Click here to read more)

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Sepoy Rakesh Singh, 28

Badhdha village, Kaimur (Bihar)

While on vacation in May, Rakesh Singh, 28, had taken his wife Kiran Kushwaha and their son Harshit, which means happy, to Assam and posed with them outside Kamakhya temple. Showing their photograph to visitors at their half-constructed, brick-and-asbestos home, Rakesh’s Harihar Singh, 68, tried his best to conceal his emotions. Not his wife Rajkawal Devi, who wailed unceasingly for the youngest of her four sons, the only one with a job.

Harihar was upset a chowkidar broke the news to them. “The district administration should have has the basic courtesy to send a senior official to share our sense of grief and pride,” Harihar said. (Click here to read more)

The Martyrs

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Havildar Ashok Kumar Singh, 44

Bhojpur, Bihar

Jagnarain Singh (right), father of Havildar Ashok Kumar Singh. (Exptess Photo: Prashant Ravi)Jagnarain Singh, 78, has been blind for the last 20 years. But now more than ever, he wishes he could see again. “I still have some strength left in me to fight Pakistan alongside the Indian Army to avenge my son’s death. The way terrorists slayed our soldiers, we should do the same,” said Jagnarain, father of Havildar Ashok Kumar Singh (44), who died in Sunday’s attack.

This is not the first such tragedy to hit the Singh family — in 1986, Jagnarain’s eldest son, Kamta Singh, a 23-year-old sepoy in the Indian Army, had died in a bomb blast in Bikaner. (click here to read more)

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Naik Sunil Kumar Vidarthi, 40 Boknari, Gaya, Bihar

Vidyarthi’s wife Kiran grieves in Gaya Monday. (Express photo by Manish Bhandari)MATHURA YADAV, 68, is distraught yet proud. “My son is the only person in the family who became a soldier. He always spoke of the value of education and wanted his daughters to do well in studies,” he said.

His son, Naik Kumar Vidarthi, 40, killed in Uri, leaves behind three daughters and a son, who live with their mother Kiran in Gaya town, some 25 km from their father’s home in Boknari. Vidyarthi last visited the village two-and-a-half months ago. He had told his father that he would come home this Dussehra and help him renovate the ancestral home. (Click here to read more)

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Sepoy Rajesh Kumar Singh, 33

Bhakur Village, Jaunpur (UP)

Sepoy Rajesh Kumar Singh’s brother, Umendra, had been awaiting his call from his new posting in Kashmir. Instead, what reached him was the news of Rajesh’s death. “He had gone about 20 days ago. We were not able to talk to him ever since then. And after all this wait, we got this news that he had been killed,” said Umendra, Rajesh’s brother. “I had spoken to him about one-and-a-half months ago and he asked about my family.”

Rajesh joined the Army about 12 years ago. Hailing from Jaunpur’s Bhakura village, he was the youngest of three brothers. (Click here to read more)

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Sepoy Harinder Yadav, 26

Gaeen Deupur , Ghazipur (UP)

At 26, Sepoy Harinder Yadav supported a family that included his wife, two sons, parents, four elder and a younger brothers and their families. He was the only one with a government job.

“Our four elder brothers work as labourers in Rajasthan and other places,” said Nagendra, the youngest brother. “I stay at home. Harinder’s wife and children also live in the village. Though our family is large, he always tried to keep us together. He had given me his ATM card a few years ago.” The family owns six bighas agricultural land. (Click here to read more)

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Lance Naik Rajesh Kumar Yadav, 35

Dubardha Village, Ballia (UP)

The last ones in Ballia’s Dubardha village to get to know about Lance Naik Rajesh Kumar Yadav’s death in the Uri terror attack were his wife Parvati Devi, who is eight months pregnant, and his ailing mother Simariya Devi, who is a heart patient.

The villagers, along with other family of Rajesh, pulled out all stops to avoid breaking the news to the two women.

“We erected barricades on the road leading to our house to ensure that no mediaperson or any relative could reach our house and talk about Rajesh’s death to my mother and his wife. We stopped everyone from visiting our house. But, some journalists managed to reach our home from the other side of the road and told about the death to Rajesh’s wife, Parvati, late in the afternoon,” said Rajesh’s youngest brother, Vikesh Yadav, who is a farmer. (Click here to read more)

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Sepoy Naiman Kujur, 30

Chainpur, Gumla district, Jharkhand

Kujur’s wife Beena in Ranchi. (Source: PTI photo)On Saturday, Sepoy Naiman Kujur, 30, had told wife Beena Tigga over phone that she should take care of their child and not worry about him. A day later, he was killed in the terror attack at Uri.

“Nobody should find oneself in the situation I am in. I feel the government should take strong action against terrorists, Pakistan, whoever is responsible,” Beena said. She added she was ready to become a soldier herself. “If they (terrorists) come before me, I will kill them,” she said. (click here to read more)

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Sepoy Ganesh Shankar, 34

Ghoorapalli Village, Sant Kabir Nagar (UP)

Tribute to Ganesh Shankar and others from UP and Bihar in Varanasi. (Source: Express photo by Anand Singh)When the news of sepoy Ganesh Shankar’s death reached them Monday morning, the family was busy making plans for the wedding of his younger sister, Indrawati, 20.

“Indrawati’s wedding was fixed in Gorakhpur a few days ago. On Monday morning, we were talking about preparations needed for marriage functions when locals informed about Ganesh Shankar’s death. It got confirmed when mediapersons reached our place,” said Ganesh’s elder brother, Suresh Chandra Yadav, a farmer. Ganesh, 34, is survived by his wife Gudia Yadav and children Amrita, 9, Ankit, 7, and Khushi, 4. (click here to read more)

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Subedar Karnail Singh, 46

Shibu Chak, Jammu (J&K)

Karnail Singh’s son Anmol. (Source: Express photo by Arun Sharma)A DAY after he lost his father Subedar Karnail Singh in the Uri terror attack, Anmol Saini (19) too wants to be a soldier and serve the nation.

“I am proud of my father because he sacrificed his life for the nation. After completing my studies, I too will join the Army to fulfil my father’s dream,’’ he said. The BA first-year student spoke to his father over phone for the last time three days ago. “He told me to work hard so that I can score good marks in the exams,’’ he said.

Sikha Dalui, mother of Gangadhar Dalui, with relatives and neighbours at Jamuna Balai village, Howrah. (Source: Express photo by Partha Paul)The path leading to the two-room Dalui hut was muddy and a neighbour was shovelling dry sand on it while another villager was fixing tubelights on the trees. Jamuna Balai village of Howrah was preparing for the arrival of its martyr, Sepoy Gangadhar Dalui.

“They struggled so much to bring him up well,’’said a neighbour. Dulai had joined the Army two years ago, still in the first year of college. (click here to read more)

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Sepoy Biswajit Ghorai, 22

Gangasagar, South 24 Parganas (Bengal)

“I will never let any member from my family join the Army again. No money can compensate this loss. Can money bring my brother back?” wails 20-year-old Bulti Ghorai, sister of Sepoy Biswajit Ghorai.

She is seated in their mudhouse in a remote part of Gangasagar in West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district. The road to the house has no lights.

Father Rabindranath Gorai says proudly, “Martyrs never die. I have lost my son. I don’t know how we will live, but I must say that I am proud. I know he died for the nation.” (click here to read more)

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Havildar Nimb Singh Rawat, 48

Rajawa, Rajsamand (Rajasthan)

The last time Havildar Nimb Singh Rawat spoke to his family members was eight days ago. “He had spoken to his wife briefly. The mobile network here doesn’t allow for longer conversations,” says Laxman Singh, his younger brother.

The village, located about 15 km off the NH 8, is at the far end of a network of country roads, crisscrossing the undulating, rocky landscape dominated by the Aravallis. (click here to read more)

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Lance Naik Chandrakant Galande, 27

Jashi village, Satara

Lance Naik Chandrakant Galande’s wife and relatives. (Source: Express photo by Sandeep Daundkar)“When I heard of young Armymen dying in terror attacks, I often felt I should ask my three sons to come back. But then, I won’t be able to tell people that I belong to this land. Am I wrong in saying that I want my two other sons to be safe? Will the government ensure that our sons are not killed like this?” says Shankar Galande, father of Lance Naik Chandrakant Galande (27), tears in his eyes. His two other sons and Chandrakant’s elder brothers, Keshav and Manjabapu, are posted in the northern sector.

Shankar is seated at their home in Galande Vasti hamlet near Jashi village, 70 km from Satara town. Not far from the house, his son’s last rites will be performed with full military honours on Tuesday. (click here to read more)

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Sepoy T S Somnath, 25

Khadangali village, Nashik (Maharashtra)

Somnath’s father outside their home in Nashik district. (Source: Express photo by Mayur Bargaje)The past few days have been tough on Somnath Thok, an onion farmer. The crash in onion prices after a bumper crop in Maharashtra caused severe heartache to small farmers like Thok, who grows the crop on a three-acre patch of land in Khadangali, in Nashik district of Maharashtra.

The blow from the market, however, was nothing compared to the shock he got on Sunday, when he was informed about the death of his son Sandip, 25. Sitting among relatives, Thok kept largely silent.

“Sandip’s memory will remain like a millstone around our necks,” said Dhyaneshwar Chavanke, Sandip’s brother-in-law. Sandip was the youngest of four siblings, including two married sisters. (click here to read more)

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Sepoy Vikas Janrao Uike, 26

Nandgaon (Khandeshwar) town, Amravati (Maharashtra)

“HE was the old man of the family,” said Babytai Uike (50) as she described her 26-year-old son, Sepoy Vikas Janrao Uike, who was killed in the Uri terror attack. Inconsolable, the mother recounted how Vikas would deposit Rs 10,000 every month without fail to help out the family.

“He helped from his earnings to marry his sister, Priti. Recently, his younger brother was engaged. Vikas, who visited us just a month back, had promised that he and his brother would get married in the same pandal and that he would select a bride for himself soon. But that is not going to happen now,” said Babytai. (click here to read more)

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Sepoy K Vikas Janardhan

Purad Nehad, Yavatmal (Maharashtra)

Purad Nerad in Wani tehsil of Yavatmal district is mourning the death of Vikas Janardhan Kulmethe,who died in hospital Monday of injuries sustained in Sunday’s terror attack in Uri. Vikas, who joined the Army in 2008 and was transferred to the camp at Uri six months ago. He had got married two years ago. (click here to read more)

I am pleased to inform everyone that Consulate General of India, Sydney has agreed to our request to start Hindi teaching classes during weekends. Our campaigning has succeeded.

Hindi learning can be useful not only for kids of Indian Australian background but also for people of general Australian community. It is a fun language, besides being the language of a big proportion of Indians.

Details:

Saturdays

2.30-4.30 PM

Students will pay only $5/hour ($40 for 10 lessons of one hour duration)

Teachers will be paid a reasonable hourly rate which will be commensurate with their experience and training

Please contact icc-moumita@indianconsulatesydney.org

or

hindi@indianconsulatesydney.org for enrolment, and also, if interested to teach Hindi.

Potential teachers should send their CV to the emails above.

Gratitude and sincere thanks to Consul General, The Hon B. Vanlalvawna for his help, support and assistance.

Consulate is willing and able to do its job, for which they deserve thank you. These classes can start within weeks once they have at least 10 students. They already have 4 students. It is our and your job to make this facility known to interested people.